New York Knicks Tickets - What's The Best Offseason Strategy?
The Knicks head into the 2010 offseason with a lot of cap space
, enough to sign two free agents to max contracts, and we know what their Plan A is. LeBron James is the team's priority, but they might not even have a shot at him once the postseason is over. Fans are already purchasing New York Knicks tickets for next season in anticipation of the King potentially joining the organization, but it's a long shot. It should definitely remain the team's Plan A, but what is Plan B, C and further down the line?
Plan B could be to land Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, or perhaps Wade and Amare Stoudemire. However, if the team landed two max free agents, they would have to fill in the rest of the roster with mainly minimum contracts. Is a starting lineup of Toney Douglas, Wade, Danilo Gallinari, Bosh and a low-end center a true contender? I'm not so sure, especially when you consider that the bench would likely consist of Wilson Chandler and six minimum salary guys. That's probably a solid team that is one injury away from picking in the lottery next offseason.
If the Knicks fail to sign LeBron, and perhaps even if they land him, signing another max free agent might not be the best strategy. It's possible that James might make signing another max guy a stipulation of his joining the team, and in that case your hands are tied, but I think filling out a well-rounded roster is the best way to go, especially if James doesn't come to New York.
For the sake of the exercise, let's say the Knicks were able to sign shooting guard Joe Johnson to a near-max contract, something in the realm of $15 million per season. A signing of this level would leave the team with about $19 million left under the cap. They could devote $16.6 million to a guy like Chris Bosh, but they could also re-sign David Lee for probably around $10 million and still have approximately $9 million to play with. I'm not yet sold on Toney Douglas being ready to assume the starting point guard role full-time, and I don't think head coach Mike D'Antoni is, either.
The Knicks could target a guy like Raymond Felton in free agency, or a cheaper option like Kyle Lowry. Both of these guys are good on-ball defenders that have proven that they're capable of logging significant minutes at the point in the NBA. Another cheap option the team should consider is former prep star Shaun Livingston, who suffered a nasty knee injury a few years back, as he had a quality run toward the end of this past season as a member of the Washington Wizards.
Another big need for New York is at the center position. Lee played out of position in the middle for much of this past season, something that the team would not like to repeat next year. The team signed Earl Barron toward the end of the 2009-10 campaign and saw encouraging results from the big man. While he could potentially be serviceable as a rebounding and defensive-oriented big man, the team would be wise to bring in a veteran as well. With Marcus Camby off the market, there isn't much for options at center. Brendan Haywood would be a possibility, but the team would probably have to overpay to get him and eat up too much of their cap space. Quality big men are not easy to find and this could be the toughest void to fill this offseason. The team is not going depend on Eddy Curry.
The Knicks will also have to flesh out their bench, mostly with minimum salary guys. Wilson Chandler will likely be the team's sixth man, while Toney Douglas should get plenty of run as well. I think the team will look to bring back Bill Walker, but will also need to bring in some frontcourt players. Barron should be back, and the team could consider options like Kyle Korver, Kris Humphries, Johan Petro, Josh Powell, Steven Hunter, Ike Diogu, Etan Thomas, Adonal Foyle, Channing Frye, Ian Mahinmi, Amir Johnson and James Singleton. Some of these guys will come cheaper than others, and who they can afford will depend on how much cap space the team has left after filling out their starting five.
So while LeBron is the priority, as he should be, and the idea of pairing to max guys is certainly tempting, I think the Knicks could be better suited to sign a max guy, retain David Lee and use the rest of the cap space to round out the roster. Mike D'Antoni traditionally uses small rotations, but depth is always an asset and the team should look to get at least eight dependable guys on the roster.
by: Pat Smith
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